Saturday 19 December 2009

Close mouthed characters.

Why do I have a character who won't tell me why he's in the book?

I mean, don't get me wrong - I love him, he is a great fun character to write, he has made my story SO much more interesting than it would have been, and I'm grateful that he jumped out of the backstory and forced himself into the role of a main character. He has lots of reasons, in terms of the story as a whole, for being there.

But I still don't know the basic reason he's actually in this place where my female main character lives. I know he has a mission; to protect her. But I don't know exactly what from (although I have a reasonably good idea) and I don't know why she needs protecting.

After 77K you'd think I'd have a clue...

Wednesday 2 December 2009

One of the best bits of NaNo

I love NaNo - I love writing, I love the community, I love my nanobuddies.

But one of the things I love most of all, probably third after the actual writing and the enormous support from my buddies, is December, when people start to ask "So, can I swap with you?"

I'm thrilled that two of the NaNo books whose excerpts have most intrigued me over the last month belong to people who want to swap with me (though I'll confess it's always a little scary to swap with people who are such good writers). I'm unnerved but very intrigued that one of the first requests to read was actually from a guy despite the fact that what I write always seems to come out as chick lit.

And I'm writing like a crazy thing trying to get enough of it in some kind of order so that it's worth someone reading it....... help!

I already have three books or parts of books sitting on my computer, looking at me lovingly and fluttering their eyelids: "Read us! Read us! You'll like us, we promise." I have two more that will be on their way reasonably soon.

But I have to keep writing... and not be distracted by them or by the really interesting and amusing idea for a new novel that has been floating round my head since mid November *headdesk*